Increasingly, housing activists are calling for housing equity. This might seem like a call for justice, but the activists use words like “equity” and “justice” to hide their true agenda. They are not promoting equality before the law. They are promoting the idea that all individuals should enjoy similar results, regardless of their own individual…
The methods for dealing with a supply shortage are well-known. Prices can be increased to curtail demand. Retailers can move inventory to areas with high demand. Manufacturers can increase their production. However, these methods have not been effective in addressing the housing shortage currently afflicting nearly every city in Texas. Price increases have done little…
It is extremely rare for socialists and capitalists to agree on an issue. After all, socialists believe that the state should control the economy while capitalists advocate for a complete separation of state and economics. However, on the issue of publicly funded sports stadiums, socialists and capitalists seem to agree, but that agreement is an…
Those with a political agenda often distort facts to suit their purpose. Opponents of rezoning in New York City are an example. They claim that rezoning displaces people of color and are citing a report published by the Churches United for Fair Housing (CUFFH). That report concluded that, While displacement trends existed before the zoning…
A Senate committee in Florida recently held a hearing about the state’s lack of low-income housing. They are concerned because nearly 900,000 Floridian households pay 50 percent of their income for housing (the standard for housing to be affordable is 30 percent of income). The committee heard testimony blaming several different groups. One blamed out-of-state…
It has become increasingly popular to add adjectives to “justice.” This has led to “social justice,” “racial justice,” environmental justice,” and now, “housing justice.” As an example, Casey Dawkins, Professor of Urban Studies and Planning at the University of Maryland, claims that we must develop a new understanding of justice as it applies to housing….
On November 2, voters in St. Paul approved a referendum to enact the nation’s most stringent rent control law. The city government was unprepared, and in the ensuing weeks dissension has been fomenting in the city as developers announce that projects are being put on hold. On one side are tenants and their advocates. They…
Cities and counties in California are required to issue permits for a specific number of houses each year as a part of the state’s Regional Housing Needs Assessment (RHNA). The RHNA is calculated in cycles every four to eight years. There are specific goals for each income category: Very low-income Low-income Moderate-income Above moderate-income The…
In late August 2021, The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the Pfizer COVID vaccine. At this time, the vaccines developed by Moderna and Johnson & Johnson have not been approved by the FDA. Despite the delay in approving the Pfizer vaccine, and the lack of approval for the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines,…
Conservatives have been attacking Biden’s suggestion that single-family zoning laws be eliminated or relaxed. They frequently call this a war on the suburbs, which is completely inaccurate. More significantly, the conservative argument is itself an attack on property rights. Tucker Carlson serves as an example. Tucker takes exception to the claim that zoning has been…
On November 2, voters in St. Paul sent city officials into a frenzy. On that day, voters approved a referendum to impose the most stringent rent control law in the nation upon the city’s landlords. It will be illegal to increase rents by more than 3 percent. And unlike other cities with rent control, St….
The Swedish economist Assar Lindbeck once noted, “Next to bombing, rent control seems in many cases to be the most efficient technique so far known for destroying cities.” On November 2, voters in both Minneapolis and St. Paul approved measures that will ultimately lead to the destruction of those cities. In Minneapolis, voters gave the…